Method and system for account maintenance via a broadband gateway

ABSTRACT

Aspects of a method and system for account maintenance via a broadband gateway are provided. In this regard, a subscriber associated with a gateway may have a plurality of subscriber accounts with a corresponding plurality of service/content providers. Information associated with the accounts may be stored in the gateway, and the gateway may present a user interface via which the subscriber may manage settings and balances associated with the accounts. The user interface may enable submitting a single payment such that funds from the single payment are applied to each of the accounts. Activity of the plurality of accounts may be displayed via the user interface. The gateway may be operable to monitor activity of one or more of the plurality of accounts. The gateway may be operable to generate one or more alerts based on the activity and based on criteria established for each of the plurality of accounts.

CLAIM OF PRIORITY

This patent application makes reference to, claims priority to andclaims benefit from U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No.61/351,696 filed on Jun. 4, 2010.

The above stated application is hereby incorporated herein by referencein its entirety

INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

This application also makes reference to:

-   -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23397US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23398US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23399US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23400US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23401US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23402US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23403US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23404US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23405US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23406US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23407U502) filed on ______;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23408US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23409US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23410US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23411 US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23412US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23413US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23414US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23415US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23416US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23417US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23418US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23419US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23420US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23421US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23422US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23423US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23424US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23425US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23426US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23427US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23428US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23429US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23430US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23431 US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23432US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23433US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23434US02) filed on even date herewith;    -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No.        23435US02) filed on even date herewith.

Each of the above stated applications is hereby incorporated herein byreference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

Certain embodiments of the invention relate to broadband gateways. Morespecifically, certain embodiments of the invention relate to a methodand system for account maintenance via a broadband gateway.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

With the continuous growth of digital television or broadcastmultimedia, and/or broadband access, which may be used in conjunctionwith online businesses, social networks, and/or other online servicesand applications, users may desire having access to a larger number ofproviders and/or a broader range of content in a manner that is flexibleand/or suits the users' lifestyles. Most users connect to the Internetusing web browsers running on personal computers (PCs). Furthermore,most households may have one or more televisions that may be used toview television and/or multimedia broadcasts. Television broadcasts mayinclude terrestrial TV, Cable-Television (CATV), satellite TV and/orInternet Protocol television (IPTV) based broadcasts. To ensure againstunauthorized reception and/or use of TV and/or multimedia broadcast,service providers may require use of dedicated set-top boxes (STBs) thatmay be used to encrypt broadcast signals communicated from the serviceproviders to generate suitable video and/or audio streams that may beplayed via televisions and/or other display/playback devices in thehousehold. Furthermore, STBs and/or TVs may support Internet access.Thus, rather than using a computer to access the Internet, a user mayfind it more convenient to use the flat screen televisions and/ormonitors in homes for the same purpose. To do so, for example, an STBconnected to a flat screen television may be provided with web browsingsoftware and protocols, and Internet connectivity, which may enable theuser to easily access the Internet or check their electronic mail(email), for example, from a convenient and comfortable location such astheir living room.

Further limitations and disadvantages of conventional and traditionalapproaches will become apparent to one of skill in the art, throughcomparison of such systems with some aspects of the present invention asset forth in the remainder of the present application with reference tothe drawings.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A system and/or method is provided for account maintenance via abroadband gateway, substantially as illustrated by and/or described inconnection with at least one of the figures, as set forth morecompletely in the claims.

These and other advantages, aspects and novel features of the presentinvention, as well as details of an illustrated embodiment thereof, willbe more fully understood from the following description and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A illustrates an exemplary communication system comprising abroadband gateway, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 1B is a diagram illustrating an exemplary broadband gateway, whichmay be operable to manage multiple service and/or content(service/content) provider accounts, in accordance with an embodiment ofthe invention.

FIGS. 2A-2D are figures that each illustrate an exemplary graphical userinterface (GUI) generated by a broadband gateway for managing multipleservices provider and/or content provider accounts, in accordance withan embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart illustrating exemplary steps for managing accountnotifications for multiple providers, in accordance with an embodimentof the invention.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating exemplary steps for managingmultiple service/content provider accounts via a broadband gateway, inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating exemplary steps for managingmultiple service/content provider accounts via a broadband gateway, inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Certain embodiments of the invention may be found in a method and systemfor account maintenance via a broadband gateway. In various embodimentsof the invention, a subscriber associated with a gateway may have aplurality of subscriber accounts with a corresponding plurality ofservice/content providers. Information associated with the subscriber'sservice/content provider accounts may be stored in the gateway, and thegateway may present a user interface via which the subscriber may managesettings and balances associated with the plurality of accounts. Theuser interface may enable submitting a single payment such that fundsfrom the single payment are applied to each of the plurality ofaccounts. Activity of the plurality of accounts may be displayed via theuser interface. The gateway may be operable to monitor activity of oneor more of the plurality of accounts. The gateway may be operable togenerate one or more alerts based on the activity and based on criteriaestablished for each of the plurality of accounts. The gateway maydisplay the one or more alerts in the user interface. The Alerts may becommunicated to a plurality of electronic devices communicativelycoupled to the broadband gateway. The account settings may determinewhich users and/or devices may access one or more of the plurality ofaccounts. The account settings may determine usage limits for one ormore of the plurality of accounts. Credits may be added to a paymentaccount based on one or both of use of the broadband gateway and inputprovided by a user of the broadband gateway. The credits may be utilizedto pay down a balance of one or more of the plurality of accounts.

FIG. 1A illustrates an exemplary communication system comprising abroadband gateway, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.Referring to FIG. 1A the broadband gateway 110 is coupled to a pluralityof electronic devices 112 ₁-112 _(K), where K is an integer greater thanor equal to 1. The broadband gateway is also coupled to one or moreservice providers 102 ₁-102 _(N) and/or one or more content providers104 ₁-104 _(M) via one or more distribution networks 108, where N and Mare integers greater than or equal to 1.

The service providers 102 ₁-102 _(N) may comprise various entities whichmay provide various services to the devices 112 via the gateway 110and/or to the gateway 110 itself. Some of the service providers 102₁-102 _(N) may comprise network access service providers which providephysical layer connections to the gateway 110. Such physical layerconnections may then be utilized to access content provided by thecontent providers 104, access services provided by other ones of theservice providers 102 ₁-102 _(N), and/or access an intranet or theInternet at-large. In this regard, “network access service provider” asutilized herein, is distinguished from the more generic term “serviceprovider” which may encompass services other than providing physicallayer access to a network. Cable television providers, plain oldtelephone service (POTS) providers, digital subscriber line (DSL)providers, cellular providers, WiMAX providers, and satellite providersare examples of network access service providers.

The content providers 104 ₁-104 _(M) may comprise various entitiesand/or networks which provide, for example, audio, video, e-book,gaming, and/or other content via the network(s) 108. The content may be,for example, downloadable and/or streaming, rented and/or purchased. Insome instances, a content provider and a service provider may beseparate. In some instances, as indicated by the dashed line 106, asingle provider may provide both content and services. That is, anentity that functions as a network access service provider may alsoprovide content and/or services other than network access and, thus,that entity may also be accurately referred to as a “content provider”and/or a “service provider.” The content and/or services that areprovided by the content provider and/or the service provider may beprovided to the gateway 110 via a physical connection provided by anetwork access service provider.

The gateway 110 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry, interfaces,and/or code that may be operable to implement various aspects of theinvention. The gateway 110 may be operable to communicate with thecontent providers 104 ₁-104 _(M), the service providers 102 ₁-102 _(N),and the devices 112 ₁-112 _(K). In this manner, the gateway 110 mayenable bidirectional communication of content and/or other informationbetween the content providers 104 ₁-104 _(M), the service providers 102₁-102 _(N) and the devices 112 ₁-112 _(K). Communications between thebroadband gateway 110 and the content providers 104 ₁-104 _(M) andservice providers 102 ₁-102 _(N) may be carried over optical, wired,and/or wireless links of the distribution network(s) 108. Similarly,Communications between the broadband gateway 110 and the devices 112₁-112 _(K) may be carried over optical, wired, and/or wireless links.

A single gateway 110 may be operable to handle multiple physical layer(i.e., layer 1 of the open-systems interconnection model (OSI))connections to multiple ones, or portions, of the distributionnetwork(s) 108, where different ones or portions of the distributionnetwork(s) 108 are owned, operated, leased, or otherwise associated withdifferent ones of the network access service providers 102 ₁-102 _(N).For example, a first network access service provider may provide networkaccess to the gateway 110 via a DSL connection over twisted-paircabling, and a second network access service provider may providenetwork access to the gateway 110 via a cable television connection overcoaxial cabling. In some instances, the gateway 110 may be operable toconcurrently communicate over the multiple physical layer connectionsprovided by the multiple network access service providers.

The electronic devices 112 ₁-112 _(K) may comprise, for example, one ormore instances of one or more of the following: a television, a laptopcomputer, a computer and/or server, a personal media player, a digitalvideo recorder, an optical media player, a mobile phone, a speaker, aAM/FM radio, a terrestrial phone, and an appliance.

In operation, the gateway 110 may communicate with the service providers102 ₁-102 and content providers 104 ₁-104 _(M) to collect accountbilling, account balance, and/or other account information from theservice providers 102 ₁-102 and content providers 104 ₁-104 _(M). Thegateway 110 may generate a user interface that may enable a user tointeract with the various accounts associated with the service providers102 ₁-102 and content providers 104 ₁-104 _(M) all from the one userinterface generated by the gateway 110. The user interface may enable auser to view account activity for the various accounts all at once. Theuser interface may enable a user to make payments to the variousaccounts, and may enable paying multiple accounts with a single payment.The user interface may enable a user to dispute charges appearing on theaccounts.

The user interface may enable configuring various settings for theaccounts. The user interface may enable enabling and disabling automaticpayments for one or more of the accounts. The user interface may enablesetting limits on account activity such that once a dollar, bandwidth,or time limit is reached for a current billing period, services and/orcontent may be suspended until the next billing cycle. The userinterface may enable configuring access permissions for the devices 112₁-112 _(K), and/or users thereof, to the accounts. The user interfacemay enable setting up account notifications such that once an accountreaches a certain dollar, bandwidth, or time amount for a billing cycle,the account holder may be notified. In this regard, the notification maybe generated by or communicated to the gateway 110 and the gateway maycommunicate the notification to one or more of the devices 112 ₁-112_(K).

In an embodiment of the invention, the service provider 102 _(N) mayprovide an account aggregation and bill payment service accessible viathe gateway 110. In this regard, an account associated with the gateway110 and/or associated with a user thereof (a “subscriber”), may be setup with the service provider 102 _(N). The account may, for example, beset up via a user interface of the gateway 110. Once the account isestablished, bills, account notifications, and other information may besent to the service provider 102 _(N) from service providers 102 ₁-102_(N-1) and from the content providers 104 ₁-104 _(M). The serviceprovider 102 _(N) may communicate the account information to the gateway110 where the information may be securely stored. A user of the gateway110 may review and interact with the accounts via the user interfacegenerated by the gateway 110. Upon modifying information or submitting apayment, the gateway 110 may communicate the modifications and/orpayment to the service provider 102 _(N), which may, in turn,communicate the modifications and/or payment to the affected ones of theservice providers 102 ₁-102 _(N-1) and/or content providers 104 ₁-104_(M). The service provider 102 _(N) may also manage a rewards orincentives program whereby credits may be added to the account based onuse of the gateway device 110 and/or based on input from a user of thegateway device 110. The credits may be redeemed for cash and utilizedfor making payments to the service providers 102 ₁-102 _(N-1) and/orcontent providers 104 ₁-104 _(M).

In an embodiment of the invention, the gateway 110 may occasionallyand/or periodically communicate with the service providers 102 ₁-102_(N) and the content providers 104 ₁-104 _(M) to collect accountbalances, account activity, and/or other account information. Thegateway 110 may securely store the account information. The gateway 110may be operable to generate a user interface that enables a user to viewthe account information, modify account settings, and pay accountbalances. Upon the user modifying an account setting and/or making apayment, the gateway 110 may communicate the settings and/or paymentinformation to affected ones of the service providers 102 ₁-102 _(N-1)and/or content providers 104 ₁-104 _(M).

FIG. 1B is a diagram illustrating an exemplary broadband gateway, whichmay be operable to manage multiple service and/or content(service/content) provider accounts, in accordance with an embodiment ofthe invention. The broadband gateway 110 may comprise suitable logic,circuitry, code, and/or interfaces that may be operable to provideconnectivity between a network, such as the Internet or other wide areanetwork, for example, and one or more devices in a home. In this regard,the broadband gateway 110 may operate as an interface device that allowsvarious devices in the home to access one or more networks, and toaccess various services and/or content via those one or more networks.

The broadband gateway 110 may communicate with the various devices inthe home via a home network, which may comprise wired and/or wirelesscommunication links. In this regard, the broadband gateway 110 maycomprise suitable hardware and/or software to provide some or all of thefunctions and/or operations of one or more of a modem, a router, and aswitch. The modem functions and/or operations may be those of a digitalsubscribed line (DSL) modem, a cable modem, or a wireless cable modem,for example. The router functions and/or operations may be those of awireless router, for example. The switch functions and/or operations maybe those of a network switch, or a local area network (LAN) switch, forexample. In some instances, broadband gateway 110 may communicate withthe various devices in the home via more than one home network.

The broadband gateway 110 may comprise one or more modules. Each ofthese modules may comprise hardware, software, or a combination thereof.In an embodiment of the invention, the broadband gateway 110 maycomprise a provider interface module 122, a processor module 124, amemory module 126, and a client network interface module 128. In someinstances, the broadband gateway 110 may be such that the variousmodules listed above may be distributed over multiple devices. Moreover,the modules listed above are provided by way of illustration and not oflimitation. Other configurations and/or architectures of the broadbandgateway 110 may be implemented. For example, the broadband gateway 110may be a virtual gateway setup in a network by utilizing virtualmachines (VMs) and/or next-generation (NG) data centers.

The provider interface module 122 may comprise suitable logic,circuitry, code, and/or interfaces that may be operable to receive datafrom and/or send data to one or more service/content providers via oneor more physical layer connections 130 to one or more network accessservice providers. In this regard, each of the physical layerconnections 130 ₁-130 _(J) may connect the gateway 110 to a differencenetwork access service provider. Each of the physical layer connections130 may comprise a wired, optical, or wireless connection. Each of thephysical layer connections 130 may utilize different physical mediaand/or different physical layer protocols. For example, the connection130 ₁ may comprise a DSL over twisted-pair connection and the connection130 _(J) may comprise a CATV over coaxial cable connection.

The memory module 126 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry, code,and/or interfaces that may be operable to store data utilized in theoperations of the broadband gateway 110. For example, the memory module126 may be utilized to store configuration data, parameters, deviceinformation, tracking and/or monitoring information, securityinformation, and intermediate processing data, for example. The memorymodule 126 may comprise storage media integrated in the broadbandgateway 110 and/or a removable storage device.

The processor module 124 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry, code,and/or interfaces that may be operable to process data received from theservice/content providers and/or data received from one or more devices112 in the home. In this regard, data received from the service/contentproviders via one or more the physical layer connections 130 ₁-130 _(J)may be processed to make it suitable for communication to a device 112and data from the one or more devices 112 may be processed to make itsuitable for communication to the service/content providers via one ormore the physical layer connections 130 ₁-130 _(J). In this regard, theprocessor module 124 may comprise one or more portions that are suitableto handle certain types of data such as video data and/or audio data,for example. The processor module 124 may also be operable to generate agraphical user interface (GUI) which may be manipulated via input from auser. The GUI may be displayed as part of an OSD on a local device 112,such as a monitor or television, and may be manipulated via a remotecontrol and/or other input device that communicates directly with thegateway 110. The GUI may be a web-based interface, and a user mayinteract with it via a computer and web browser. The processors module124 may utilize the memory 126 in performing its functions.

The client network interface module 128 may comprise suitable logic,circuitry, code, and/or interfaces that may be operable to send data toone or more devices in the home via the home network. The client networkinterface module 128 may also be operable to receive data from one ormore devices in the home via the home network. The client networkinterface module 128 may be operable to support multiple communicationprotocols, standards, and/or data transport technologies.

The broadband gateway 110 may be operable to provide energy managementby varying the configuration of one or more devices in the home network.The broadband gateway 110 may collect and/or store energy-relatedinformation for one or more devices and/or for the home network, and mayutilize such information to control the operation of those devices. Forexample, the broadband gateway 110 may utilize channel capacityflexibility and content coding options to minimize and/or optimize powerutilization. The broadband gateway 110 may also configure and/or managethe configuration of the network between the broadband gateway 110 andone or more service/content providers based on the energy-relatedinformation associated with the devices in the home. The broadbandgateway 110 may be utilized to display energy-related metrics, includingconsumption trends and/or costs, for example, and to display anyavailable credits/rewards that may be redeemed by a user. In someinstances, when a device in the home network is a certified device, suchas a California efficient display, for example, the broadband gateway110 may be utilized to provide that information to a service/contentprovider and obtain rewards/credits associated with the use of suchcertified devices. Moreover, overall network power consumption may bemanaged by sharing information among multiple interconnected broadbandgateways.

The broadband gateway 110 may be operable to adapt and/or enable changesin a subscription model and/or in multimedia delivery characteristicsbased on the capabilities of the various devices in the home network.For example, high-definition video content may be delivered to certaintype of devices, such as digital televisions (DTVs), whilelow-definition video content and/or text may be delivered to a differenttype of devices, such as personal mobile devices. In this regard, thebroadband gateway 110 may be utilized to reduce bandwidth and/orprocessing power consumption in the home network. The broadband gateway110 may also support and/or use multi-transport processing, which may beperformed sequentially, in parallel, and/or utilizing distributedprocessing.

The gateway functionality associated with a user, such as securityfeatures, preferences, applications, electronic programming guides(EPGs), and user profile, for example, may be ported from the broadbandgateway 110 to one or more other broadband gateways 110. In someinstances, a visitor may be allowed access to their content outsidetheir service/content provider service area by, for example, classifyingthe access level for different users and/or by providing limited accessto content. Moreover, the broadband gateway 110 may allow multiple userinterface software structures by, for example, standardizing aninterface to service/content providers and devices in the home network.

The broadband gateway 110 may be operable to broker and/or arbitratewith service/content providers the consumption of certain services, suchas music and video, for example. In some instances, the broadbandgateway 110 may perform content search, transport discovery, ranking,and/or sorting. These operations may be performed based on contentquality, price, quality-of-service (QOS), and network protocolssupported by the devices in the home network, such as service levelagreements (SLAs), for example.

Various emergency-related services in the home network may be supportedby the broadband gateway 110. For example, the broadband gateway 110 mayenable first responders to provide alerts to a select group of users byaccessing the broadband gateway 110 via secure links provided by theservice/content providers.

Customized graphical user interfaces (GUIs) may be generated by thebroadband gateway 110, wherein the GUIs may be used to visually displayand/or provide interaction with the customized content.

For peer-to-peer communication, the broadband gateway 110 may beutilized to allow enhanced content sharing in a service/content providernetwork. In this regard, the broadband gateway 110 may be utilized toconstruct a directory service for peer-to-peer connectivity with friendsand family, for example. The broadband gateway 110 may be utilized toprovide incentives to users who engage in peer-to-peer communication.Moreover, the broadband gateway 110 may be utilized to match the contentcoding to the service type being consumed by the user and to make thenecessary allocations through the network with respect to peer-to-peeror conventional Internet programming or broadcast programming.

The broadband gateway 110 may be utilized in connection with constrainednetwork resources, such as time of day, traffic congestion, energyconsumption status, and the like, for example, to provide incentives fora user to accept a lower cost, lower quality of service that isdynamically configured for current network conditions. In someinstances, the broadband gateway 110 may allow enhanced low latencyservice delivery to client devices in a home network.

The broadband gateway 110 may be operable to run or execute an agent toextract content, rating, copyright, language, privacy rules, andautomatically add user generated content, for example. In someinstances, the broadband gateway 110 may provide rating-relatedinformation or channel prediction to a service/content provider toassist with fast channel change.

Bandwidth optimization by, for example, placing future requests forbandwidth to a service/content provider and accepting the best timeslotsprovided in return may be enabled by the broadband gateway 110.

The broadband gateway 110 may be operable to combine and/or blendmultiple contents for use as single content in the home network. Forexample, the broadband gateway 110 may blend different video and audiocontents for an event by accessing one or more service/content providersand providing automatic and/or manual content synchronization.

The protection, management, and/or tracking of confidential data, suchas health and financial records, for example, by tagging the data may beprovided by the broadband gateway 110. Only when a user authorizes thetransfer of the confidential data will such data be stored and/oraggregated. The broadband gateway 110 may be operable to create atrusted rating mechanism for content. The broadband gateway 110 may besecure against external threats that may be downloaded from outside thehome network and may provide a secure domain distribution in the homenetwork. Automated and secured billing and payment services may also beprovided by the broadband gateway 110. Moreover, the broadband gateway110 may be operable to filter and/or block specific content or portionsthereof, and may also be utilized to govern client content access, whichmay be based on controlled user profiles and/or authorization requeststo one or more additional client devices.

The broadband gateway 110 may be operable to utilize client profileinformation to select layered video service(s) and/or transmission. Insome instances, the programming and/or enhanced video layers received bythe broadband gateway 110 may be aggregated midstream by one or morenetwork or routing nodes.

The broadband gateway 110 may support a reduction in the cost ofunwatched content by using multi-tier billing for downloaded content,such as video content. The broadband gateway 110 may be utilized toprovide a unified payment portal for collecting and/or aggregatingcharges from multiple service and/or content providers.

FIGS. 2A-2C are figures that each illustrate an exemplary graphical userinterface (GUI) generated by a broadband gateway for managing multipleservice provider and/or content provider accounts, in accordance with anembodiment of the invention. The GUI of FIGS. 2A-2C may, for example, bedisplayed as part of an on-screen menu accessible via a “menu” button ofa remote control. The exemplary GUI may comprise frames 202 and 204.Referring to FIG. 2A, the frame 202 may display a summary of the variouscontent and/or service provider accounts. Each account may be listedalong with a current balance. Associated with each account may be abutton 206 that, upon selection by a user, may bring up activity for theaccount in the frame 204. In the exemplary scenario depicted in FIG. 2A,the account activity button 206 for the media store account has beenselected. Accordingly account activity for the media store account isdisplayed in frame 204. Account activity may comprise, for example, thedate of the activity, a description of the activity, and the charge forthe activity. Also shown in the frame 204 is a button 214 which, uponselection, may enable a user to dispute a charge appearing on the mediastore account.

Referring to FIG. 2B, associated with each account in the frame 202 maybe a button 208 that, upon selection by a user, may bring up accountsettings for the account. In the exemplary scenario depicted in FIG. 2B,the account settings button 208 for the television account has beenselected. Accordingly, the account settings information for thetelevision account is displayed in the frame 204. The button 222 may,upon selection, bring up a window that enables a user to add users tothe television account and/or remove users from the television account.The button 224 may, upon selection, bring up a window that enables auser to add or remove devices 112 to the television account and removedevices 112 from the television account. The button 226, upon selection,may bring up a window that enables a user to set up dollar, bandwidth,and/or time limits for the television account. The limits may be for alldevices and/or users, or for particular devices and/or users. The button230 may enable removing the account, that is, disabling management ofthe account via the gateway 110. The button 228, upon selection, maybring up a window that enables a user to configure notifications thatare to be generated based on activity in the television account.

Configuration of notifications may comprise configuring when to send anotification. For example, a notification may be sent upon, for example,the television bill reaching a certain dollar amount or upon someoneattempting to bill a pay-per-view event to the account. Additionally oralternatively, configuration of notifications may comprise configuringhow to send the notification to an account holder. For example, thedevices 112 ₁-112 _(K) coupled to the gateway 110 may comprise one ormore televisions and the notification may be displayed on one or more ofthe televisions. As another example, the devices 112 ₁-112 _(K) coupledto the gateway 110 may comprise one or more cellular phones and thenotification may be sent via text message to one or more of the cellularphones. As another example, the notification may be sent via email overthe distribution network(s) 108.

The frame 202 may also comprise a button 212 that, upon selection, mayenable the user to add a new service/content provider account to bemanaged via the gateway 110. In the exemplary scenario depicted in FIG.2C, the button 212 has been selected. Accordingly, an exemplaryinterface for adding an account is displayed in the frame 204. Theinterface for adding an account may comprise a selection box 232 forselecting from a list of supported providers, text boxes 234, 236, and238 for entering account information, and a button 240 that, uponselection, may send the account information to the provider to registerfor account maintenance via the gateway 110.

The frame 210 may also comprise a button 210 that, upon selection,brings up an interface for making bill payments. In the exemplaryscenario depicted in FIG. 2D, the button 210 has been selected.Accordingly, the payment interface is displayed in the frame 204. Thepayment interface may comprise a plurality of controls 240 that enableselecting which bills to pay. In the exemplary scenario depicted in FIG.2D the “pay all” option has been selected. In this manner, the gateway110 may enable submitting one payment to pay all outstanding balancesfor multiple service/content providers. The payment interface alsocomprises buttons 252, 254, and 256 which may enable selecting thesource of funding for a payment. The payment interface may also comprisea button 258 that, upon selection, may bring up a window that may enablesetting up automatic payments for one or more of the service/contentprovider accounts managed via the gateway 110.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart illustrating exemplary steps for managing accountnotifications for multiple providers, in accordance with an embodimentof the invention. Referring to FIG. 3 the exemplary steps may begin instep 302 when a user accesses a GUI, such as the GUI described withrespect to FIGS. 2A-2D, and configures one or more notifications for oneor more service/content provider accounts managed via the broadbandgateway 110. In step 304, one or more users and/or devices may consumecontent via the broadband gateway 110 and/or utilize services providedvia the gateway 110, where the content and services are provided byproviders. In step 306, the account activity may trigger a notification.For example, the notification may be triggered based on the amount ofcontent consumed, on the amount of services utilized, on the type ofcontent consumed, on the type of services utilized, on the devices fromwhich the content is consumed, on the devices from the services areutilized, on the time at which the content is consumed, the time atwhich the services are utilized, on the user consuming the content,and/or on the user utilizing the services. In step 308, the broadbandgateway 110 may send the notification to one or more of the devices 112,to other broadband gateways, and/or to other destinations via thedistribution network(s) and/or the Internet. The devices to which thenotification is sent may depend on, for example, what the notificationis and/or why the notification was generated.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating exemplary steps for managingmultiple service/content provider accounts via a broadband gateway, inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention. Referring to FIG. 4, theexemplary steps may be begin with step 402 in which a gateway 110 may beinstalled to interface with the devices 112 and the service/contentproviders via the distribution network(s) 108. In step 404 a user mayaccess a GUI, such as the GUI described with respect to FIGS. 2A-2D, andmay navigate to the Account/Billing portion of the GUI. In step 408, theuser may enter account information into the gateway 110. Suchinformation may be securely stored in the gateway 110 such that the userdoes not need to enter it each time and such that the gateway 110 canaccess the account information from the service/content providers. Instep 408, the gateway 110 may occasionally and/or periodically receiveinformation, such as account activity, billing, and notifications, fromthe service/content providers. In step 410, a user of the gateway 110can bring up the GUI to review the account information, make payments,and/or otherwise manage the service/content provider accounts.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating exemplary steps may exemplary stepsfor managing multiple service/content provider accounts via a broadbandgateway, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. Referring toFIG. 5, the exemplary steps may begin with step 502, in which a gateway110 may be installed to interface with the devices 112 and theservice/content providers via the distribution network(s) 108. In step504, a user/account holder associated with the gateway 110 may setup apayment account with a payment service provider, such as serviceprovider 102 _(N) described with respect to FIG. 1A, that providesunified management of multiple service/content provider accounts. Instep 506, various service/content provider accounts associated with thegateway 110 may be linked in the gateway 110 to the payment account. Instep 508, as content is consumed and/or as services are utilized via thegateway 110, credits may be added to the payment account. Example ofways in which credits may be earned comprise users providing input, suchas filling out electronic questionnaires, via the gateway 110, usersconsuming particular content via the gateway 110, users agreeing todefer consumption of content until a later time. In step 510,accumulated credits may be utilized to pay service/content providerbills via the gateway 110 and the payment account.

Various aspects of a method and system for account maintenance via abroadband gateway are provided. In an exemplary embodiment of theinvention, a subscriber associated with a gateway 110 may have aplurality of subscriber accounts with a corresponding plurality ofservice/content providers 102/104. Information associated with thesubscribers service/content provider accounts may be stored in thegateway 110, and the gateway 110 may present a user interface via whichthe subscriber may manage settings and balances associated with theplurality of accounts. The user interface may enable submitting a singlepayment and funds from the single payment may be applied to each of theplurality of accounts. Activity for each of the plurality of accountsmay be displayed via the user interface. The gateway 110 may be operableto monitor activity of one or more of the plurality of accounts. Thegateway 110 may be operable to generate one or more alerts based on theactivity and based on criteria established for the one or more of theplurality of accounts. The gateway 110 may display the one or morealerts in the user interface. The alerts may be communicated to aplurality of electronic devices 112 communicatively coupled to thebroadband gateway 110. The account settings may determine which usersand/or devices 112 are permitted to access one or more of the pluralityof accounts. The account settings may determine usage limits for one ormore of the plurality of accounts. Credits may be added to a paymentaccount based on one or both of use of the broadband gateway 110 andinput provided by a user of the broadband gateway 110. The credits maybe utilized to pay down a balance of one or more of the plurality ofaccounts.

Other embodiments of the invention may provide a non-transitory computerreadable medium and/or storage medium, and/or a non-transitory machinereadable medium and/or storage medium, having stored thereon, a machinecode and/or a computer program having at least one code sectionexecutable by a machine and/or a computer, thereby causing the machineand/or computer to perform the steps as described herein for accountmaintenance via a broadband gateway.

Accordingly, the present invention may be realized in hardware,software, or a combination of hardware and software. The presentinvention may be realized in a centralized fashion in at least onecomputer system, or in a distributed fashion where different elementsare spread across several interconnected computer systems. Any kind ofcomputer system or other apparatus adapted for carrying out the methodsdescribed herein is suited. A typical combination of hardware andsoftware may be a general-purpose computer system with a computerprogram that, when being loaded and executed, controls the computersystem such that it carries out the methods described herein.

The present invention may also be embedded in a computer programproduct, which comprises all the features enabling the implementation ofthe methods described herein, and which when loaded in a computer systemis able to carry out these methods. Computer program in the presentcontext means any expression, in any language, code or notation, of aset of instructions intended to cause a system having an informationprocessing capability to perform a particular function either directlyor after either or both of the following: a) conversion to anotherlanguage, code or notation; b) reproduction in a different materialform.

While the present invention has been described with reference to certainembodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art thatvarious changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted withoutdeparting from the scope of the present invention. In addition, manymodifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material tothe teachings of the present invention without departing from its scope.Therefore, it is intended that the present invention not be limited tothe particular embodiment disclosed, but that the present invention willinclude all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims.

1. A method for networking, the method comprising: in a broadbandgateway that is operable to handle a plurality of physical layerconnections to a corresponding plurality of network access serviceproviders: storing information associated with a plurality of subscriberaccounts, wherein: said plurality of subscriber accounts are associatedwith a corresponding plurality of providers that are accessed via one ormore of said physical layer connections; and said plurality of providerscomprises: a plurality of service providers, a plurality of contentproviders, or a combination of one or more service providers and one ormore content providers; and presenting a user interface that asubscriber may interact with to manage financial transactions associatedwith said plurality of subscriber accounts.
 2. The method according toclaim 1, wherein: said user interface enables submitting a singlepayment; and funds from said single payment are applied to balances ofeach of said plurality of subscriber accounts.
 3. The method accordingto claim 1, comprising displaying activity of each of said plurality ofsubscriber accounts via said user interface.
 4. The method according toclaim 1, comprising: monitoring activity of one or more of saidplurality of subscriber accounts; and generating one or more alertsbased on said activity and based on criteria established for said one ormore of said plurality of subscriber accounts.
 5. The method accordingto claim 4, comprising displaying said one or more alerts in said userinterface.
 6. The method according to claim 4, comprising communicatingsaid alerts to a plurality of electronic devices communicatively coupledto said broadband gateway.
 7. The method according to claim 1, whereinsaid user interface enables said subscriber to manage settings for eachof said plurality of subscriber accounts.
 8. The method according toclaim 7, wherein said settings determine one or more of: whichelectronic devices coupled to said broadband gateway are permittedaccess to said one or more of said plurality of accounts; which users ofsaid electronic devices are permitted access to said one or more of saidplurality of accounts; and usage limits for said one or more of saidplurality of accounts.
 9. The method according to claim 1, comprisingadding credits to a payment account based on one or both of: use of saidbroadband gateway, and input provided by a user of one of saidelectronic devices coupled said broadband gateway
 10. The methodaccording to claim 9, wherein said credits are utilized to pay down abalance of one or more of said plurality of accounts.
 11. A system fornetworking, the system comprising: one or more circuits for use in abroadband gateway, said one or more circuits being operable to: handle aplurality of physical layer connections to a corresponding plurality ofnetwork access service providers; store information associated with aplurality of subscriber accounts associated with each of a plurality ofproviders that are accessed via one or more of said physical layerconnections, wherein said plurality of providers comprises: a pluralityof service providers, a plurality of content providers, or a combinationof one or more service providers and one or more content providers; andpresent a user interface that a subscriber may interact with to managefinancial transactions associated with said plurality of subscriberaccounts.
 12. The system according to claim 1, wherein: said userinterface enables submitting a single payment; and funds from saidsingle payment are applied to balances of each of said plurality ofsubscriber accounts.
 13. The system according to claim 1, wherein saidone or more circuits are operable to display activity of each of saidplurality of subscriber accounts via said user interface.
 14. The systemaccording to claim 1, wherein said one or more circuits are operable to:monitor activity of one or more of said plurality of subscriberaccounts; and generate one or more alerts based on said activity andbased on criteria established for said one or more of said plurality ofsubscriber accounts.
 15. The system according to claim 4, wherein saidone or more circuits are operable to display said one or more alerts insaid user interface.
 16. The system according to claim 4, wherein saidone or more circuits are operable to communicate said alerts to aplurality of electronic devices communicatively coupled to saidbroadband gateway.
 17. The system according to claim 1, wherein saiduser interface enables said subscriber to manage settings for each ofsaid plurality of subscriber accounts.
 18. The system according to claim7, wherein said settings determine one or more of: which electronicdevices coupled to said broadband gateway are permitted access to saidone or more of said plurality of accounts; which users of saidelectronic devices are permitted access to said one or more of saidplurality of accounts; and usage limits for said one or more of saidplurality of accounts.
 19. The system according to claim 1, wherein saidone or more circuits are operable to add credits to a payment accountbased on one or both of: use of said broadband gateway, and inputprovided by a user of one of said electronic devices coupled saidbroadband gateway
 20. The system according to claim 19, wherein saidcredits are utilized to pay down a balance of one or more of saidplurality of accounts